Sweet song, Bitter tone
by emyy250
Summary: Fox is having trouble putting Alex to sleep and Owen comes to help. A Talia Xanatos what if story. One shot. Set after the Gathering.


**What if Talia had died when she attempted suicide?**

* * *

Chapter 1

Lullaby

Alex had been bawling for the last few hours. Fox had tried to rock him, change him, and feed him, but nothing worked. The baby also refused to be alone. He'd scream as soon as she left his sight.

"Fox?" Owen walked into the nursery.

"He's been crying and I tried everything. He won't stop." She ran her fingers through his baby hair.

"Have you tried to sing?" He asked.

"He didn't like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star or Rock-a-bye Baby or when I tried to read to him." She said exasperated.

"Perhaps those songs are too familiar to him." Owen walked toward her and she gave him Alex.

Alex had realized he was away his mother, but he knew the feeling of Owen's suits. Owen held him to his chest and sang softly. He swayed gently and Alex was calming down. The songs were mostly wordless. Owen kept going through all the lullabies he knew, but Alex was still wouldn't go to sleep.

Owen turned into Puck; he continued singing. Puck's singing was light and easy where Owen was low and steady. He never had to worry about going off key. Fox was becoming relaxed. Alex was still clinging onto him.

Fox noticed a conflicted look pass over his face. Puck started singing again. This lullaby was different. It was someone's favorite. Sung so often, it was like breathing. But it was tinged with grief. Alex didn't notice and fell asleep. Puck put Alex back in his crib. Fox followed him out.

Owen was leaning against the wall, shaking. His glasses were shoved in his pocket. She got closer and saw the tears in his eyes. His cheeks grew flushed as a broken sob slipped through his lips. He struggled to keep quiet.

Fox was at a loss. He was the one who comforted her. She leaned against his shoulder, hoping he'd understand her gesture. She wasn't sure if she should do anything more intimate. Good amount of time passed. He pawed at his eyes with his good hand.

"…thank you, Fox." He whispered.

"Owen… I-" She frowned.

"Come with me." He walked toward his room.

She once again followed. He was a few strides ahead. When they had gotten to his door, he unlocked it and let her in. It was clean and lightly furnished. She watched as he got something from his closet. He took it to the bed and sat. She sat as well.

The first thing she noticed was all the drawings. They were mostly in crayon and had two figures. She realized one of them was Puck from the color of his clothes. The stuffed fox caught her eye because it was orange. Its fur was flat and its tail had been tugged on one too many times. The next was a baby blanket. It was Beatrix Potter quilt. It was white and had Mrs. Rabbit holding two babies in the middle of it. Underneath it, she saw a mostly filled photo album.

"One winter night, a cup of creamed coffee and bottle was left in a nursery. Puck took it as an invitation to enter the mortal's house. He picked up the small baby and fed her in the rocking chair. She was so small, just born a few months earlier. After feeding time, I put her down in her crib. She wouldn't go to sleep. I played that lullaby. She fell asleep.

Puck snooped around the house. He realized that the family was struggling. Her parents didn't pay much attention to her. They fought a lot. So he started watching over her, playing with her. We thought she would forget about us, being so young. Then… then she left out a glass of milk for us. She wanted to hear the lullaby again. We kept coming back. She loved it when we taught her new pranks. Sometimes, she just wanted cuddles. It wasn't as often as he would have liked, but it was something.

Talia had gotten her first girlfriend, Adriana, around 6th grade. They lived in same neighborhood. They were cute together. Just before freshman year, Talia planned an elaborate goose chase so she and Adri could make love." Owen and Puck smiled wistfully. "I was so proud of her."

Then he became somber. His breath shuddered.

"It was a storming night. We sensed something wrong with our daughter. We went to her and- She was bleeding so much. Her breath smelt of bleach. I could feel the pain in her stomach.

I put her to sleep and took to Grandmother, begging her to heal my child. She said there was nothing to be done. I took- I took Talia to her favorite spot, a nursery her father worked at, and woke her up. I wasn't going to let the last thing she saw be that dark room. She was barely able to open her eyes. We watched the clouds. I sang softly to her. _G'night, 'uck._ That's the last thing she said to me. _G'night, 'uck._ " He broke down and sobbed again.

It wasn't as restrained like last time. He wailed and leaned into her. Fox hugged him. She honestly thought he would break down sooner. She found a few of her own tears slipped out as well. They held each other for a while. Owen's fingers trembled as he brought out the photo album and drawings.

"This is Talia's first drawing…"


End file.
